I urge you to vote for the Lake Pend Oreille School levy on Aug. 30. My support for the levy is two-fold, responsibility and safety.

Educating our children is a local responsibility that leads to success here, within our state, and in our country. Succeeding in a career today, and tomorrow, requires a global perspective as well as grounding in the arts and sciences. Our teachers know how to teach for the modern economy; they need adequate facilities to succeed.

Our children need to be, and feel, safe while learning. Many of LPOSD’s schools are old with infrastructure that is beyond its useful life. Heating, ventilation and plumbing infrastructure can only be maintained for so long before it must be replaced. Infrastructure is not going to magically become less expensive in the future. Failing infrastructure needs to be addressed now in order to maintain a safe environment for learning.

Due to the unfortunate system Idaho has for funding public education, local voters are responsible for levying themselves for basic education. This year, 85 percent of the school districts in Idaho are collecting tax dollars for either facility levies or bonds for school construction. The Lake Pend Oreille School District is not one of them. It is time for us to support quality facilities for our communities as well.

Ask for an absentee ballot, vote early at the Bonner County Clerk’s office, or vote at the polls on Aug. 30.

KODY VAN DYK

Sandpoint